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Suicide terrorists 1

Author Posting. © The Authors 2007. This is the author's version of the work. For full bibliographiccitation, please refer to Suicide and Life Threatening Behavior 37 (1), 35-49).http://www.atypon-link.com/GPI/doi/abs/10.1521/suli.2007.37.1.35

Suicide terrorists: Are they suicidal?

Author: Ellen Townsend

Author responsible for correspondence: Ellen Townsend, BA (Hons), PhD.

Author Affiliation: Risk Analysis, Social Processes and Health group, School of Psychology,

University of Nottingham, UK

Address: School of Psychology, University of Nottingham, University Park,

Nottingham, NG72RD, UK.

Tel: ++ 44 (0115) 8467305

Fax: ++ 44 (0115) 9515324

Email: [email protected]

Acknowledgements

I thank Dr Scott Campbell for comments on an earlier draft of this paper and Dr Ben Park for

advice.


Suicide terrorists: Are they suicidal?

Abstract

This paper investigates whether suicide terrorists are suicidal. A review of the worldwide

literature on suicide terrorism uncovered five published empirical studies describing data

collected from potential suicide terrorists or the surviving friends and families of deceased

terrorists. The many discrepancies uncovered between suicide terrorists and other suicides, on

key factors known to underpin suicidality, suggest that such terrorists are not truly suicidal

and should not be viewed as a subgroup of the general suicide population. Nonetheless,

methods developed by suicidologists, such as the psychological autopsy, will help increase

our understanding of the individual and group factors which underpin suicide terrorism.


Introduction

Interest in understanding the psychological and psychiatric underpinnings of suicide terrorism

has increased dramatically in recent years. Suicide attacks are a deadly practice most

commonly carried out by extremist and fundamentalist groups (Atran, 2003; Dale, 1988;

Salib, 2003; Silke, 2003). The scale of the acts of suicide terrorism on September 11th 2001

ensured that the devastating results of such attacks are now viewed as world-wide phenomena

and have deeply affected many of those who live in western societies (Lerner, Gonzalez,

Small, and Fischhoff, 2003). Unfortunately suicide terrorism appears to be rising across the

globe (Pape, 2003; 2005) and understandably the academic community, across disciplinary

boundaries, has been galvanised into action to try to elucidate the key factors that underpin

such violent and hostile behaviour. Recently it has been suggested that (a) suicide terrorists

are similar to ‘altruistic suicides’, and that (b) suicide terrorists, owing to their altruistic

nature, share similar characteristics to others who die by suicide (i.e. not just altruistic type

suicides) (Leenaars and Wenckstern, 2004).

It is widely acknowledged that there is no such thing as a ‘typical suicide’. Suicides

occur as a result of diverse interacting social (eg, unemployment), personal (eg. relationship

problems) and clinical (eg. depression) factors. Clearly, this complexity makes both the

investigation and treatment of suicidal behaviour a very challenging task and leading

researchers in the area have suggested that the study of sub-groups of the suicidal population

is a useful future direction for research (Hawton and van Heeringen, 2000). So perhaps, to

some extent, it is understandable that some researchers wish to treat suicide terrorists as a

subgroup of the general suicide population.

The aim of this study was to review the available literature to try to determine the

degree to which suicide terrorists are actually suicidal, and to examine whether such terrorists

should be considered as a ‘sub-group’ of the general suicide population. Accordingly, a


comprehensive literature review was conducted. The following databases were searched to

identify papers that had investigated suicide terrorism: PubMed (1950-September 2005),

PsychInfo (1872-September 2005) and Web of Science (Science Citation Index Expanded

1945-September 2005; Social Sciences Citation Index 1956-September 2005; Arts and

Humanities Citation Index 1975- September 2005). The following search terms were used

“suicid* and bomb*”, “suicid* and terror*”, “suicid* and altruis*”, “suicid* and martyr*”;

“suicid* and attack*”. An internet search was also conducted using ‘Google Scholar’ to

identify ‘grey materials’ pertinent to this issue using the search terms specified above.

References lists of articles identified in the database searches were checked.

The search of the available literature yielded few empirical studies of suicide

terrorism, which is understandable given the practical difficulties of involved with studying

the behaviour of these individuals. Just five of the published reports uncovered were empirical

studies that had examined suicide terrorism in a direct way with human participants involved

with suicide terrorist activity (Fields, Elbedour, and Hein, 2002; Hassan, 2001; Meloy, 2004;

Post, Sprinzak, and Denny, 2003; Schbley, 2003) and only three of these studies appeared in

peer-reviewed journals (Meloy, 2004; Post et al., 2003; Schbley, 2003). Brief details about the

five empirical studies identified in the review may be viewed in Table 1.

Insert Table 1 about here

As most of the very scarce evidence uncovered during the literature search related to

suicide terrorism in Palestine or by Islamic fundamentalists around the world, the scope of

this article is focused on this type of suicide attack (though there is likely to be overlap with

other types of suicide terrorism – such as those carried out by the Tamil Tigers). Moreover,

this focus is also warranted given that the attention of scholars around the globe has


understandably turned to uncovering the psychology of Islamic fundamentalist groups

(Victoroff, 2005). In the sections that follow, a number of important issues which emerged

repeatedly in the suicide terrorism literature are discussed in relation to existing knowledge

about, and theoretical perspectives on, suicidal behaviour. These issues, along with the

similarities and differences observed between terrorist suicides and other suicides are

summarized in Table 2.

Table 2 about here

Is suicide terrorism an example of altruistic suicide?

Recently, some authors have suggested that suicide terrorists should be considered to be the

same as other suicides - especially ‘altruistic suicides’ (suicide based on sacrificing oneself

for the good of others) (Leenaars and Wenckstern., 2004; Stack, 2004). Leenaars and

Wenckstern (2004) note:

Suicidology is not alone in wrestling with the question, ‘who are the altruistic

suicides?’ – the suicide bomber, the terrorist, the martyr, the soldier who dies to

save his friends, the Hindu woman who climbs on the funeral pyre to be with her

husband forever. ( p.131)

They highlight the paucity of evidence relating to altruistic suicide (they identified just

one paper – a qualitative study (Park, 2004), and used evidence (two martyrdom notes) from

this study to claim that these notes were the same as other suicide notes they have studied

(Leenaars and Wenckstern., 2004). However, the ‘martyrdom notes’ used here to support their

similarity claim are actually those of ‘self-immolators’ – individuals who have burned

themselves to death as a protest but without harming others (B.C.P. Park, personal

communication, November 2nd, 2005). Hence, this is insufficient evidence on which to base

the claim that suicide terrorists should be considered as the same as other suicides, altruistic

or otherwise. What Park’s (2004) study does reveal is that self-immolators may fit the model


of an altruistic suicide, but it is not appropriate to extend these findings to the case of suicide

terrorists who kill both themselves and others. Indeed, a crucial omission from both the notes

analysed by Leenaars and Wenckstern (2004) was the intent of the self-immolators to take

other lives at the same time as taking their own life, whereas in suicide terrorists this has been

revealed in another form of ‘martyrdom note’ – the pre-act video (also known as video

testaments (Atran, 2003)). A further consideration which separates the acts of self-immolators

from suicide terrorists is the fact that self-immolation is rarely even considered a terrorist act

since the act is not intended to cause terror but rather to elicit sympathy and understanding

from a target audience (Niebuhr, 1960).

Recently it has been suggested that although suicide terrorists may fit the ‘altruistic

type’ of suicide, they also possess elements of ‘fatalistic type’ suicide in that the persons

carrying out these acts are subject to political totalitarianism (Pedahzur, Perliger, and

Weinberg, 2003). However, this assertion is based on the concepts of altruistic and fatalistic

suicide from Durkheim’s typology using data gathered from reports from the Israeli

newspaper “Ha’aretz”, which as the author’s acknowledge are likely to be both censored and

biased according to the viewpoint of the editor or the writer of the articles. Thus, results of

this study are unlikely to accurately reflect the cases they report on.

It is important to question how plausible it is to equate suicide terrorists, who take not

only their life but also the lives of many others, with other altruistic suicides where physical

harm is reserved solely for the person carrying out the suicidal act. Most classic examples of

altruistic suicide do not involve the death of others in the altruistic act (with the exception,

perhaps, of Kamikaze pilots). However, even if we do accept the notion that suicide terrorists

may possibly belong to a new category of altruistic suicide, it is unlikely that altruism will be

the sole cause for the behaviour. Even a brief glance at the suicide literature reveals that

suicide is a truly multifaceted problem. It has been characterised as a ‘multidimensional


malaise’ (Leenaars, 1996) involving a complex interaction and sequencing of events each

having social, biological and psychological influences. There is no one cause for suicide (e.g.

O'Carroll, 1993), meaning that altruism is unlikely to be the only factor contributing to a so-

called altruistic suicide. Moreover, a number of authors claim that the actions of terrorists are

stimulated by a wide set of motives (Moghadam, 2003; Salib, 2003; Silke, 2003). If altruism

alone does not motivate suicide terrorism, the question remains ‘What does?’ Importantly for

this paper, we need to examine whether motivations for suicide terrorism and other suicides

are similar.

Motivations for suicide and suicide terrorism

Empirical research from suicide notes, psychological autopsy studies and interview-based

studies of survivors of suicide attempts highlights that diverse reasons are given for suicidal

behaviour including problems with money, relationships, employment, mental health, drugs

and alcohol, to name but a few.

It appears impossible to describe a ‘typical suicide’ generally. Neither is it possible to

describe a ‘typical’ suicide terrorist (Silke, 2003). However, Merari (2005) has discussed the

profile that many suicide terrorists share across a range of demographic, social and

psychological variables. For example, we do know that generally suicide cells prey on young,

unattached men (Atran, 2003; Merari, 2005) and that these young men have deeply held

religious beliefs in common (Hassan, 2001). Some authors argue that religious beliefs are

absolutely crucial in understanding motivations for suicide attacks (Orbach, 2004; Salib,

2003). One Muslim psychologist rejects the idea that suicide terrorism involves suicide at all,

suggesting instead that it is an act of martyrdom, based on the Islamic principles of Jihad

(holy war), which, as such is considered as legal behaviour (Abdel-Khalek, 2004). It is

important to note here that Islam forbids suicide – it is not sanctioned under any circumstance


(Abdel-Khalek, 2004; Taylor and Ryan, 1988). A terrorist interviewed in one study became

angry when asked a question about suicide saying, “This is not suicide. Suicide is selfish, it is

weak. This is istishad [martyrdom or self sacrifice in the service of Allah].” (Post et al., 2003,

p. 179).

Hassan (2001), who interviewed nearly 250 individuals from various militant

Palestinian camps in Gaza between 1996 and 1999, claims that suicide terrorists are all

extremely religious and believe their actions to be sanctioned by Islam. Indeed, some research

on suicide terrorist groups suggests that suicide terrorists are indoctrinated into believing in

their own immortality. They are convinced of this (Hassan, 2001; Orbach, 2004), and

convinced that the paradise into which they will ascend manifests itself as an actual physical

presence for them. Belief in gaining entrance to such an afterlife has been cited as a likely

motivating factor in suicide-terrorist behaviour (Williams, 1997). This is confirmed by

evidence from an interview with a 27-year-old man selected for a suicide attack. When asked

how he felt about being selected he replied (Hassan, 2001):

It’s as if a very high, impenetrable wall separated you from Paradise or hell. Allah

has promised one or the other to his creatures. So, by pressing the detonator, you

can immediately open the door to paradise - it is the shortest path to heaven. (¶6)

An interview with an Imam affiliated with Hamas corroborates these beliefs. Hassan (2001)

reports the Imam as saying that:

… the first drop of blood shed by a martyr during jihad washes away his sins

instantaneously. On the Day of Resurrection, he can intercede for seventy of his

nearest and dearest to enter heaven; and he will have at his disposal seventy-two

houris, the beautiful virgins of Paradise. (¶25)


Taylor and Ryan (1988) describe the ‘bassamat al-farah’ - the so-called smile of joy of

religious martyrs worn at the time of martyrdom. They note that “martyrdom, because of its

promise of merit hereafter, is an act of joy, symbolized by this smile” (p. 102). Using post-

mortem interviews with the families and friends of deceased suicide terrorists one study

showed that eight of the nine terrorists were described as being very religious (Fields et al.,

2002).

Such findings clearly highlight the importance of religious beliefs in suicide terrorism.

Some of the research conducted to date demonstrates that religious beliefs are crucial in

understanding the willingness to become a suicide terrorist. On the basis of a content analysis

of texts about suicide terrorism Kimhi and Even (2004) suggest that a religious prototype of

suicide terrorism exists. And, worryingly, it is thought that religious fundamentalist suicide

terrorists may pose the greatest danger to society (Post et al., 2003). However, others claim

that not all Islamic suicide terrorism is religiously motivated and that political forces are more

important in the development of suicide terrorism (Merari, 1998, 2005; Sprinzak, 2000). Of

course, a range of motivations for suicide terrorism exist and these have been discussed by

Moghadam (2003), who proposed a two-phase model of suicide terrorism encompassing

individual and organizational goals.

Nonetheless, having established that religion is a key factor in motivating many

suicide terrorists we must now consider whether such religiosity is a factor in other types of

suicidal behaviour. The very latest research demonstrates that religious beliefs may actually

protect against suicidal behaviour (Dervic et al., 2004; Nonnemaker, McNeely, and Blum,

2003). A study of depressed inpatients found that patients who reported no religious

affiliation had more lifetime suicide attempts than those who reported having a religious

affiliation (Dervic et al., 2004). Data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent

Health in the USA demonstrated that private religiosity (measured by frequency of prayer and


the importance of religion) was associated with a significantly lower probability of having

had suicidal thoughts or having engaged in suicidal behaviour (Nonnemaker et al., 2003). So

whilst protective against suicide in the general population, strong religious beliefs may

actually be a significant risk factor in becoming a suicide terrorist.

Another motivation that may be prominent here is vengeance, that is, ‘getting back’ at

someone (Beck, 2002; Moghadam, 2003; Rosenberger, 2003), especially at those in authority

(Pape, 2003). Rosenberger (2003) argues that the idea of vengeance in suicide terrorism is

crucial to understanding the suicide attacker and Adbdel-Khalek (2004) reports that the notion

of vengeance appears to be a central element of the philosophy of martyrdom in relation to

what is called the Palestinian cause.

Personal revenge is a possible motivation for a suicide mission (Fields et al., 2002;

Kushner, 1996; Moghadam, 2003). It appears that the terrorists nearly always have a relative

or close friend who has been wronged or even killed by the perceived enemy, and so join

terrorist organizations in a vengeful frame of mind (Kushner, 1996). Fields et al. (2002) report

that five of the nine suicide terrorists they studied in a case-controlled post-mortem study had

been injured as a result of the intifada in Gaza. Eight of their subjects had been imprisoned

and tortured during this time, and five of eight families of the terrorists were reportedly beaten

and humiliated by soldiers. Seven families of the deceased suicide terrorists felt one

motivation for the bomber had been a response to the injustices they had perceived to be

perpetrated by Israeli occupation.

In contrast, the explanations of suicidal individuals for their behaviours rarely relate to

vengeance or coercion - the reasons most commonly chosen by the suicidal include loss of

control and escape (Bancroft et al., 1979). Vengeance, though not common, is found to be a

motivator for some completed suicides. For example, some data support the notion of revenge

via suicide by women suffering abuse (Counts, 1987; Meng, 2002). However, it is important


to note that this sort of ‘revenge suicide’ does not involve physical harm to others as part of

the suicide act.

A final, yet crucial, point to make about the potential motivational differences between

terrorist suicides and other suicides is that there is a strong instrumental element to the motive

of the suicide terrorist. After all, the real goal of suicide terrorism is to create terror (Pape,

2003), with the ultimate aim of effecting religious or political change, which is certainly not

the case with suicides in general. So, to summarize, the motives of suicide terrorists appear to

be very different indeed to other suicides, which concurs with the latest writings of at least

one expert on political terrorism (see Pape, 2005).

Murderous, not suicidal, intent

The preceding sections suggest that suicide terrorists differ from the vast majority of other

suicides in a number of ways. A large discrepancy between suicide terrorists and non-terrorist

suicides is that suicide terrorists are murderers. Their own suicide act deliberately takes the

life of another, or many others. And the primary intention of the act carried out is murder

rather than suicide - in fact suicide here can be viewed as a ‘by-product’ of the attack (B.C.B.

Park, personal communication, November 2nd, 2005). Whether for religious, moral, vengeful

or altruistic reasons, the fact is that in most suicides there is an absence of murderous intent

and this factor in itself separates most suicides from suicide terrorists.

Perhaps then, the subgroup of the suicide population which could be thought of as

most closely related to suicide terrorists is homicide-suicides (formerly called murder-

suicides). These suicides are very rare indeed. One study found that of the 600,000 deaths

which occur in England and Wales each year an average of 60 occur in homicide-suicide

incidents (Barraclough and Harris, 2002). If we consider this figure in the context of the

number of suicides in 2002 (N = 4,755) (National Statistics, 2005), it becomes clear that these


kinds of suicide are indeed extremely rare - constituting around 1.3% of all suicides. In the

US the rate of homicide-suicides appears to be very similar accounting for around 1.5% of all

suicides (Marzuk, Tardiff, and Hirsch, 1992).

However, even within this tiny subgroup of the suicide population a clear difference

exists between homicide-suicides and suicide terrorists. In homicide-suicides the majority of

incidents involve one victim and one suspect, and in around 90% of incidents family members

are victims - these usually being the female partners of male suspects (Berman, 1979;

Barraclough et al., 2002; Chan, Beh, and Broadhust, 2003; Marzuk et al., 1992). In contrast,

suicide attacks typically involve many victims and one suspect, where the victims are

unknown to the killer. Moreover, it is interesting to note that the overwhelming majority of

homicide-suicide acts involve enmeshment and vengeance between the victim and the

perpetrator (Berman, 1979). Whereas, for the suicide terrorist, it is likely that enmeshment

occurs with his or her peer group (Lachkar, 2002), not with the victims of the attack. Another

significant difference between many homicide suicides and suicide attacks is the temporal

spacing of the acts of homicide and suicide. In suicide terrorism the acts are simultaneous

whereas homicide-suicide has been defined as “a person [who] has committed a homicide and

subsequently commits suicide within one week of the homicide” (Marzuk et al., 1992; p.

3179). (Though it should be noted that this is not the only definition of homicide-suicide and

other researchers do not apply the one week criterion when defining homicide-suicide – see

Berman (1979) - for example)). Thus, even if we try to take homicide-suicides as the closest

relative to suicide terrorists from the ‘general suicide population’, it is clear that there are

large and important differences between key characteristics of the two types of behaviour, and

between the victims of these acts.

Moreover, there is little evidence to suggest the existence of suicidal intent in most

suicide terrorists. Atran (2003) claims that suicidal symptoms are completely absent in suicide


terrorists. In fact suicidal intent is actively and emphatically denied by those involved in

carrying out such attacks (Post et al., 2003; Schbley, 2003). This is perhaps unsurprising

given the belief that the suicide terrorist’s act ensures an afterlife which manifests itself as a

real physical presence, and that suicide is forbidden in Islam (Abdel-Khalek, 2004). Recall the

sentiments expressed by participants in the studies quoted earlier in this paper - where the

vilification of suicide was apparent and the notion that suicide terrorists are suicidal was

completely denied (Hassan, 2001; Post et al., 2003).

Is there a common psychology?

It has been hypothesized that suicide terrorists may be psychologically similar to other

suicides in terms of their desire to remove themselves from an intolerable situation ‘due to

unmet emotional needs’ (Leenaars and Wenckstern, 2004; p.134). Indeed, Salib (2003) claims

that anger and hopelessness may be primary motivations for the suicide terrorist. Is this at

least one area of overlap between the general suicide population and suicide attackers? Do

these terrorists exhibit the common features of important psychological models of suicidal

behaviour, such as that described so elegantly by Mark Williams in his ‘Cry of Pain’ theory?

(Williams, 1997; Williams and Pollock, 2000). According to Williams suicidal acts are the

cries of pain from individuals who are defeated in some important aspect of their lives and

feel trapped in that situation without hope of escape or rescue. Leading suicidologists suggest

that suicidal acts must fundamentally be understood as behaviours ‘aimed at obtaining relief

from an unbearable mental state’ (Michel, 2000, p. 666). For example, Shneidman (e.g. 1996)

claims that suicide is caused by psychological pain which he terms ‘psychache’. Are the

psychological features of entrapment, defeat and unbearable mental pain common features of

suicide terrorists? By all accounts they feel quite the opposite. Due to their strong belief in

their cause they go to their death feeling hopeful rather than hopeless, believing that their


death will bring about certain specific gains such as achieving entrance to an afterlife, being

an inspiration to others and thus advancing their cause, and delivering others from suffering

(Williams, 1997). Also, Atran (2003, p. 1537) claims that suicide terrorists do not

demonstrate hopelessness or a sense of ‘nothing to lose’.

Another psychological feature of violent suicides is aggression (Apter, Brown, Korn,

and van Praag, 1990). Anger and aggression certainly seem to be important factors in suicide

attacks too (Atran, 2003), but it crucial to note that the available research suggests that

majority of suicide terrorists are likely to have been skilfully manipulated into feeling the way

they do largely as result of intra-group and inter-group processes fuelled by religious beliefs

(Atran, 2003: Beck 2002; Hassan, 2001; Post et al., 2003; Salib, 2003). This is very different

to the aetiology of anger in other suicides which seems to be mediated by biological

mechanisms, (namely the serotonin system (Apter et al., 1990)) and exacerbated by

interacting personality, social and psychological factors (Mann, Waternaux, Haas, and

Malone, 1999; Williams, 1997). Suicides involving violent methods are known to have a

strong impulsive component that is biologically mediated by the serotonin system (Bertolote,

Fleischmann, and Wasserman, 2005; Träskman, Åsberg, Bertilsson, and Sjostrand, 1981).

The impulsive element of such violent suicidal acts appears to be completely absent in the

suicide terrorist where careful, meticulous plans are made. Furthermore, given the rich

rewards believed to be awaiting the terrorist it is unlikely that s/he goes to his or her death

feeling negative emotions. (Indeed this hypothesis is supported by empirical research with

would-be suicide attackers (Hassan, 2001; Post et al., 2003)).

Another point of potential psychological commonality worth considering here is the

prevalence of mental illness in suicide terrorists - as compared to other suicides. The

incidence of diagnosable mental illness is high in both attempted (Haw, Hawton, Houston and

Townsend, 2001) and completed suicides (Arsenault-Lapierre, Kim, and Turecki, 2004;


Bertolote et al., 2005; Cavanagh, Carson, Sharpe, and Lawrie, 2003; Lonnqvist, 2000).

Depression is a particular problem in both completed and attempted suicides, however, this

does not seem to feature in suicide terrorism. Atran (2003) claims that suicide terrorists are

‘non-pathological’ and that the problem faced by researchers is to determine why so many of

these individuals are recruited in order to carry out the wishes of the organizations who

prepare suicide terrorists. It is not clear whether the incidence of mental illness in suicide

terrorists is higher than in the general population (Lamberg, 1997). Neither is it known

whether the incidence rate is equivalent to that observed in the suicide population. To the best

of our knowledge suicide terrorists do not carry out their terrorist acts as a result of mental

illness (Bond, 2004; Colvard, 2002; Gordon, 2002; Hassan, 2001; Merari, 2005; Williams,

1997). Williams (1997) describes the potential clinical and psychological differences between

suicide attackers and other people who commit suicide. He notes:

Most people who commit suicide are depressed when they do so; they see death as the end

to their suffering. One of two feelings usually predominates in the mind of the person who

is suicidal in this depressive sense, both stemming from hopelessness. The first is that

have been abandoned by everyone; the second that they are a burden to everyone,

especially to those they love. Contrast this with the martyr. They see hope and believe in a

cause. (p. 111)

The role of group processes and indoctrination

Perhaps a major motivational and psychological difference between suicide terrorists and

other suicides is whether the decision to act is made at the level of the individual or at the

level of the group, mediated by those in authority. A number of authors have noted that the

decision to ‘act’ as a suicide attacker is not arrived at in isolation (Atran, 2003; Burdman,

2003; Moghadam, 2003; Rosenberger, 2003; Volkan, 2002). Rather, it seems that the


terrorists are coached to their deaths (remembering that death is probably not the perceived

end point for the suicide terrorist). Indeed, Atran (2003, p. 1536) notes that, “No instances of

religious or political suicide terrorism stem from lone actions of cowering or unstable

bombers”. It seems that the decision to send out a suicide terrorist is almost always made by

others (Poland, 2002). Perhaps then, such terrorist behaviour is better explained by group

processes than by mental disorder (Colvard, 2002).

Atran (2003) draws a comparison with Milgram’s famous obedience to authority

experiments in which ordinary individuals obey orders and perform actions which are

detrimental to others in the right circumstances (Milgram, 1974). He claims that it is the

‘sense of obligation’ in response to authority that drives suicide attacks rather than murderous

intent. Indeed, murderous intent may not exist at the level of the individual, but rather in

relation to those in authority organising the suicide attacks (Merari, 1998; 2005; Rosenberger,

2003). Rosenberger (2003) argues that “The leaders, in fact, are murdering their suicide

bombers pure and simple” (p.17). However, it is extremely doubtful that the indoctrination

experienced by a suicide attacker means that they lack murderous intent altogether.

An interview study with thirty five incarcerated Middle-Eastern terrorists revealed that

the major reason for joining a terrorist group in the first place was peer influence because it

seemed that everybody was joining up (Post et al., 2003). Moreover, Atran (2003, p. 1537)

claims that ‘loyalty to [an] intimate cohort of peers, which recruiting organizations often

promote through religious communion’ is crucial to understanding suicide terrorism.

Meticulous plans are made, often in groups or cells of about three to six individuals who are

lead to death by a charismatic leader (Atran, 2003; Poland, 2002). In some cases the

individual is carefully selected and prepared for suicide attacks but in other cases extreme

coercive measures are used (Ergil, 2001; Post et al., 2003; Silke, 2003).


Of course group and individual processes must interact in order to produce a suicide

attacker. Once selected for a suicide terrorism mission a processes of indoctrination occurs to

strengthen motivation for carrying out the attack and prevent it from dissipating.

Indoctrination typically takes place in a number of stages and each stage relies on cognitive,

emotional and social psychological processes. Moreover, certain personal characteristics may

increase the likelihood of an individual’s susceptibility to indoctrination including religious or

political values that resonate strongly with the indoctrinating organisation (Baron, 2000). For

example, in suicide terrorism indoctrination may be driven by religious (eg. the reward of

martyrs in the afterlife) or nationalist themes (eg. the humiliation of Palestine by Israel)

(Merari, 2005). For example, a member of Hamas explained the ‘preparation’ of a suicide

terrorist as follows (Hassan, 2001):

We focus his attention on Paradise, on being in the presence of Allah, on meeting the

Prophet Muhammad, on interceding for his loved ones so that they, too, can be saved from

the agonies of Hell, on the houris and on fighting the Isralie occupation and removing it

… (¶30)

Two ‘assistants’ stay with the would-be suicide attacker at all times in the week before an

attack and they report any wavering or doubts to a senior trainer who can be called in to

provide inspiration and support (Hassan, 2001). However, Silke (2003) notes that it is

“increasingly recognised that it is a mistake to view suicide bombers as brainwashed pawns”

(p. 94). Worryingly, it appears that there is a surfeit of would-be recruits to suicide cells who

are virtually beating down the doors of those in power to get involved (Hassan, 2001).

Nonetheless, would-be terrorists have described how membership of the terrorist

group served to fuse their personal identity with the collective identity and goals of the group

(Post et al., 2003). Volkan (2002) claims that vulnerabilities in a person’s identity permit the

imposition of a wider group identity. Israeli (1997) has suggested that suicide attackers may


suffer from low self-esteem, which increases vulnerability in relation to powerful peer

influences and reactions to those in authority. However, in a roughly case-controlled post-

mortem interview study of a small group of suicide terrorists no evidence of lowered self-

esteem was uncovered (Fields et al., 2005).

Hence, crucial to understanding suicide terrorism is an appreciation of the group

processes in indoctrinating organizations (Atran, 2002; Merari, 1998, 2005; Moghadam,

2003; Schbley, 2003). Some authors have argued that these processes are more important in

determining suicide attacks than religious beliefs (e.g. Merari 1998; 2005). (However, a

recent psychometric study administered opportunistically to over 300 potential suicide

terrorists (members of Hizbullah attending a parade to celebrate the Day of Jerusalem)

demonstrated that respondents who were high school-educated, had the highest level of

religious training and the highest levels of religiosity were most willing to become suicide

attackers (Schbley, 2003)).

Psychology and psychiatry have a pivotal role to play in furthering the understanding

of group and individual processes which contribute to terrorist attacks, and may ultimately

contribute to the prevention of future attacks. We know something about the factors

underpinning hostility between groups in terms of the influences on inter-group bias

(Hewstone, Rubin, and Willis, 2002; Reed II and Aquino, 2003; Tzeng and Jackson, 1994)

and determining what can be done about such biases and conflict between groups (Beck 2002;

Hewstone et al., 2002). But specific research on in-group/out-group hostility and other group

processes which influence the development of suicide terrorism is now required. Green and

Seher (2003) recently highlighted the fact that the academic literatures on prejudice and ethnic

conflict have developed separately and that an integrated research synthesis in this area is now

needed.


The role of the media in fostering out-group hostility and reinforcing the impact of

suicide attacks must also be explored. To some degree, by highlighting the impact of such

attacks, the media may serve to promote both recruitment to suicide cells and copycat terrorist

behaviour. The widely documented influence of media portrayals on suicidal behaviour has

lead to the development of media guidelines to help prevent contagion effects. Guidelines

may now be required for handling media reports of suicide attacks.

Another factor which warrants discussion in relation to group processes is the need to

understand why some individuals are more likely to become influenced sufficiently to be

willing to die as suicide attackers. Two factors emerge as crucial in this review. First, the

possibility that individual differences in personality may be important, and second, the role of

strong religious beliefs (it is possible, of course, that these factors may interact in the

development of a suicide attacker).

In terms of possible personality foundations to suicide terrorism Lachkar (2002)

proffers a theory outlining the personality characteristics of suicide terrorists based on a

psychoanalytical approach. The theory highlights the role of parenting - particularly in

relation to the terrorist’s relationship with his/her father. Dysfunctional parenting is thought to

contribute to the development of borderline-type personality traits. She argues that this

ultimately leads to suicide cells developing gang-like group dynamics such that the terrorist

cell becomes enmeshed with the terrorist’s sense of identity. Her assertions are not, however,

backed up with empirical evidence though this claim is supported by the work of Post et al.

(2003) who report that membership of terrorist groups for 35 incarcerated Middle Eastern

terrorists involved the melding of individual and group identity. Thus, a possible risk factor

for becoming a suicide terrorist exists at the level of individual personality. However, some

authors insist that there is no such thing as suicide terrorist personality type, and claim that

suicide terrorists come from a variety of backgrounds with diverse personalities and


motivations (Hassan, 2001; Schbley, 2003; Silke, 2003; Victoroff, 2005). However, as noted

above it is likely that certain personal characteristics lead certain individuals to be more

susceptible to indoctrination techniques than others (Baron, 2000). It seems, then, that

although strong empirical evidence is currently lacking, psychology and psychiatry could play

a vital role in the future investigating the influence of personality, personality disorders and

psychiatric disorders in the development of suicide terrorist behaviour.

The group processes described above are entirely absent in most other cases of

suicide, who somehow arrive at the decision to die on their own, and who die alone. Most

notably, the degree of planning observed in suicide terrorists is not apparent in most other

suicides. As Stengel, (1964) once noted, “Carefully planned acts of suicide are as rare as

carefully planned acts of homicide” (p. 74). There are some other examples of suicides

involving group (eg. cult suicides) and dyadic processes (eg. suicide pacts). But these are very

rare. And as before, a fundamental difference between these acts and suicide attacks is that

innocent victims are not killed as part of the suicidal behaviour.

Conclusions and recommendations for future research

The first thing to note about the results presented here is the lack of empirical work that has

been conducted on psychological and psychiatric underpinnings of suicide terrorism. On the

basis of the sparse evidence uncovered in this review it appears that there are few, if any,

factors which are truly common to both suicide terrorists and other suicides. Neither is it clear

whether the suicide terrorist should be considered as a type of altruistic suicide - I am not

alone in questioning this postulation (see for example Abdel-Khalek (2004). It is possible that

the suicide terrorist could be considered an atypical variant of the category of altruistic suicide

(Leenaars and Wenckstern, 2004) or as a new type of ‘fatalistic-altruistic’ suicide (Pedahzur

et al., 2003), but the data that support these claims are potentially misleading in important


ways and lack strong empirical evidence to validate them. It is also possible that the notion of

altruistic suicide requires adjustment to permit a distinction to be made between those who

harm others and those that do not.

However, a number of authors have questioned whether suicide terrorists should be

viewed as cases of suicide at all (Israeli, 1997; Spencer, 2002) indeed those carrying out such

acts deny absolutely that what they are doing involves suicide (Post et al., 2003; Schbley

2003). Rather, these acts are viewed as a form of martyrdom (Abdel-Khalek, 2004: Kushner,

1996; Post et al., 2003; Schbley 2003), which appear to be largely driven by religious beliefs,

social pressure and group processes (Atran, 2003; Gordon, 2002; Moghadam, 2003). Having

considered some of the key factors underpinning suicidal behaviour and examining how these

factors apply to suicide terrorists it is probably more profitable to view the actions of suicide

terrorists as a different class of behaviour altogether, rather than as a subgroup of the general

suicide population. That is to say, suicide terrorists do not appear to be truly suicidal in the

sense that suicidal behaviour is usually defined and understood.

Importantly, significant differences appear to exist between suicide terrorists and other

suicides in terms of key factors known to underpin suicide in the general population including

social, biological, psychological and psychiatric problems. Even the characteristics of the

closest related subgroup, which is probably that of the homicide-suicide, are shown to differ

markedly with what (little) is known about suicide terrorist behaviour. An important feature

of the suicide terrorism process which is absent in the general suicide population (with the

exception of a small number of mass suicides and suicide pacts) is the coercive processes

used by those in authority.

On balance, the available evidence demonstrates that suicide terrorism has a range of

characteristics which, when examined closely, are shown to be very different from other

suicidal behaviour. Even where overlap appears to exist, significant and important differences


are found which suggests that treating suicide terrorists as a subgroup of the general suicide

population is unlikely to increase our understanding of suicidal behaviour. Instead, it is more

useful to consider suicide terrorism as a dimension of terrorist behaviour and the suicide

terrorist as belonging to a subgroup of the terrorist population. Nonetheless, researchers

wishing to understand the behaviour of suicide terrorists could profit from adopting

commonly used methods in suicidology. One example is the psychological autopsy method

which has been used to great effect to increase our understanding of key psychological,

medical and psychiatric factors associated with suicide. For example, a study of young people

who died by suicide showed that over half had expressed suicidal thoughts within the year

before death and over 40% had made clear statements of intent within a month before death

(Houston, Hawton, and Shepperd, 2001). Such research has helped us understand the

importance of listening seriously to, and providing adequate support for, those who disclose

suicidal feelings, plans and ideas.

The psychological autopsy technique could, therefore, be an important tool in the

study of suicide terrorists, though there may be significant pragmatic and cultural barriers to

carrying out this type of research. Medical records may be difficult to access and those close

to the suicide attacker may be unwilling to be interviewed about the perpetrator (though

Hassan (2001) demonstrated that those in militant camps are willing to be interviewed about

suicide terrorists)). This then, is an approach that may yield important insights into the mind

of the suicide terrorist and help to identify those young people at risk of becoming

indoctrinated into acting as suicide attackers. One researcher has starting the ball rolling in

this respect by researching, in some depth, the case of Mohammed Ata (Meloy, 2004). This

research represents an important step in the right direction though future studies would need

to investigate a number of cases and compare them with a suitable control group (eg. non-

suicidal terrorists or another group who had died by violent means). Fields et al. (2005) used


what they term post-mortem interviews of a small group of Palestinian suicide terrorists

which involved interviews with families and friends of suicide terrorists, and they also

recruited a control group of males roughly the same age and background as the terrorists.

Methodologically robust empirical studies of suicide terrorism are lacking and the lack

of attention paid to suicide terrorism in the academic literature has been noted by others

(Moghadam, 2003). Victoroff (2005) has suggested that future research may highlight the

crucial and potentially modifiable social, and psychological factors that contribute to the

development of the ‘terrorist mind set’. Robust, theory-driven empirical studies are now

desperately needed and must be developed in methodologically sound ways. Those wishing to

adopt the psychological autopsy method would do well to adopt the recommendations of

Hawton et al., (1998).

The results of this review strongly suggest that suicide terrorists are not truly suicidal

and that attempting to find commonalities between suicide terrorists and others who die by

suicide is likely to be an unhelpful path for any discipline wishing to further understanding of

suicidal behaviour to follow. Equating the actions and motivations of suicide terrorists with

those of other suicides perhaps does something of a disservice to those individuals who die

quietly, alone, and with no murderous intent. This is not to say that we should not try to

understand the motivations and the psychological, social and psychiatric factors associated

with suicide terrorism. Indeed as I have noted this research is now urgently needed and some

of the methods used by suicide researchers, such as the psychological autopsy, will prove

extremely valuable in furthering our understanding of suicide terrorism.

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31

Table 1 Key empirical reports on suicide terrorism identified in the literature review

Authors/Date Participants Data source/methods Type of publication

Meloy (2004) N=1. Mohamed Atta. (September 2001 suicide attacker.)Plus data gathered from family and friends.

Case study. Included physical evidence surrounding the act,archival data from public and private records and indirectassessment of personality using the Revised NEO personalityassessment [(Costa & McRae, 2002)].

Peer-reviewedjournal.

Schbley (2003) (1) 15 religious terrorists. (2) 341 potential suicideterrorists recruited opportunistically from Hizbullahmembers attending the parade on the Day of Jerusalem(December 14th 2001).

(1) Data from taped interviews with the 15 religious terroristswere used to design the questionnaire study. (2) Psychometricdata from questionnaires handed out to Hizbullah members bymembers of the author’s family serving refreshments at theparade.

Peer-reviewedjournal.

Post et al.(2003)

35 incarcerated Middle Eastern terrorists (21 from IslamicJihad and Hizbullah, 14 secular terrorist from Fatah).

Semi-structured interviews. Peer-reviewedjournal.

Fields et al.(2002)

(1) N>1000 children and adolescents aged 6-16 yearsfrom Northern Ireland, Israel, the West Bank, Gaza,Lebanon and South Africa over 25 year period. (2)Families and friends of Palestinian suicide terrorists whocarried out their attacks between 1993 and 1996. Theterrorists were all male and aged 19-15 years at death.Nine control subjects were selected by asking the familiesof the dead terrorists to nominate friends possessing asimilar background and characteristics to their deadrelative. Four family members and two male friends ofeach suicide terrorists and each control were interviewed

(1) Psychometric data gathered from the children andadolescent on personality and violence (amongst other variablessuch as the Thematic Apperception Test) were used to developa protocol for post-mortem interviews. (2) Post-mortem studiesof Palestinian suicide terrorists – interviews conducted withfamilies and friends of nine suicide terrorists. Control interviewswere carried out with nine friends of the terrorists. Post-mortemevaluation included assessment of personality type,psychological state and life experiences. Measures includedCoopersmith’s scale of self-esteem and the Achenbach ChildBehaviour Checklist.

Book chapter.

Hassan (2001) Nearly 250 people in militant Palestinian camps in Gaza.Including suicide terrorist volunteers who were unable tocomplete their mission, families of dead suicide terroristsand the men who trained the terrorists. Interviews wereconducted between 1996 and 1999. Participants ranged inage from 18-38 years.

Interviews. Newspaper.

32

Table 2. Summary of the major themes and theoretical issues covered with differences between terrorist suicides andother suicides highlighted

Suicide type

Theme/Issue Terrorist suicides Non-terrorist suicides

Religion Common motivator for suicide terrorism. Protects against suicide.

Overall goal of act To create terror. To die or escape from unbearablesituation/feelings.

Expectation of outcome following suicide act Entrance to a paradise afterlife (not death). Death likely or probable.

Vengeance Common motivator for act. Rare motivator for act.

Murderous intent Common motivator for act. Rare motivator for act.

Altruism May be an atypical variant where the death ofothers is involved.

Found in some cases of suicide but does notusually involve the death of others in the act.

Psychological characteristics/disorders Not evident in most but enmeshment withreligion/suicide cell may be important.

Evident in most completed suicides (especiallydepression).

Indoctrination and group processes Commonly cited motivation. Rare motivator for suicide but may exist in masssuicides and suicide pacts.

Media reports May induce copycat attacks and influencerecruitment to cells.

May influence copycat suicidal behaviour.

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